The name of the tragic mythological Trojan princess who was given the gift of prophecy by Apollo, but was condemned never to be believed, Cassandra has been used for exotic characters in movies and soap operas. Ethereal and delicate, Cassandra was in the Top 70 throughout the 1990s, but is now descending in popularity.

Cassandra was the name of Jane Austen's mother, sister and two cousins. Cassandra Wilkins is a character in John Dos Passon's novel Manhattan Transfer, but in the 2007 Woody Allen thriller, Cassandra's Dream, Cassandra was not the name of a person, but a sailboat.

Currently, Cassandra Wilson is a noted jazz singer; Charlie Sheen has a daughter Cassandra born in the eighties.

Swan Says:

Cassandra/Kassandra does not mean prophetess, not even slightly. It's a feminisation of the Greek male name Cassander. The 'andra' is from 'andros' meaning 'of man'. The 'cass' could have several roots, depending on how you look at it. The real origin is uncertain. Proto Indo European 'skand' meaning shine/light? Arabic al-qasr as in castle (via later Arabic kasbah), meaning fortress? So 'Light of Man'? 'Fortress of man?' Either of these meanings would be acceptable, and you can see why Homer choose it for his character - she was the light of mankind for sure, the only one capable of warning them. But nope, definitely not prophetess.